PESHAWAR, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 21st Aug, 2026) Gor Khatri, one of Peshawar’s most significant archaeological and historic landmarks, came alive on Friday as students from public and private educational institutions visited the ancient historic site recently included by UNESCO in its heritage list.
Discovering a past that stretched back more than two millennia, the students carried miniature national flags and smartphones, walking through the stone-paved passages of the historic site in the heart of Peshawar where they listen attentively to archaeologists and teachers, who explained how the sprawling complex had evolved through successive civilizations and primitive era.
For many of the young visitors, the trip offered a rare opportunity to experience history beyond classroom walls and liberaries.
“Gor Khatri’s visit was always on my priority list and today my dream came true,” said Anaya Bibi, a sixth-grade student of Peshawar Model school as her face lighting up with joy and excitement.
“I have read about Gor Khatri in history books, but being here in person, walking through the same ground where people from so many different periods once lived and travelled, is something amazing,” she added.
The visit to UNESCO world heritage site was arranged as part of Pakistan’s 79th Independence Day as educational institutions using the historic occasion to encourage students to learn about the country’s diverse historical and primitive heritage.
For the students, the experience turned the day into more than a celebration rather it became an opportunity to connect with the glorious past of Pakistan.
Archaeological excavations at Gor Kathri have revealed cultural material dating to at least the 2nd–3rd century BC, with layers associated with Indo-Greek, Kushan, Parthian, Hindu Shahi, Mughal, Sikh and British periods.
UNESCO describes the Gor Kathri complex as a fortified historic and archaeological site occupying an almost square enclosure of about 160 metres by 160 metres within Peshawar’s walled city.
“This ancient site is a testament to uninterrupted cultural evolution,” said Bakhtzada Muhammad, Assistant Director of Archaeology and Museums told students.
He said the earliest archaeological layers unearthed here date back to the Indo-Greek period. Visitors can trace the history of Peshawar through coins, pottery, seals, beads and architectural remains preserved at the site.
Archaeological investigations at Gor Khatri began in 1992 through a joint initiative involving the Directorate of Archaeology and Museums and the University of Peshawar.
Subsequent excavations disclosed successive occupation layers that helped strengthen the understanding of Peshawar as one of South Asia’s oldest continuously inhabited urban centres with a documented history of nearly 3000 yesrs.
The discoveries included Roman coins, Kushan pottery, jewellery, seals and other artefacts provided strong evidence of the extensive commercial and cultural contacts that passed through the ancient city.
Historians regard Peshawar as a major crossroads between Central Asia, Afghanistan and the Indian subcontinent, where Gor Khatri provides a particularly illustration of that vital role.
The site’s visible architecture largely reflects later historical periods, but beneath it lie much older archaeological layers. He said UNESCO notes that the complex contains successive phases of construction and adaptation, including Mughal structures, Sikh period modifications and a colonial-era fire brigade building dating to the early twentieth century.
During the Mughal period, Gor Khatri functioned as an important caravanserai and stopping place for travellers and traders. The complex’s large gateways, chambers and courtyard reflect its role as an institution serving people moving along the region’s major routes.
Students were informed that the present quadrangular complex incorporates Mughal-era construction associated with Princess Jahan Ara, daughter of Emperor Shah Jahan, who developed the site as a caravanserai.
The massive gateways and rows of chambers still bear witness to the days when merchants, travellers and officials passed through Peshawar on journeys linking South Asia with Central Asia for trade.
The students were particularly fascinated by the religious history of Gor Khatri and asked questions from archeology experts.
At the centre of the complex stands a structure traditionally associated with Gorakhnath, while the site also contains evidence of the changing religious and political landscape of Peshawar.
UNESCO identifies the central religious structure and the surrounding chambers as integral parts of the historic complex.
Inside the small museum, students examined artefacts representing different periods of the city’s past.
Anaya stopped before an intricately worked ancient seal. “Imagine how many hands this passed through,” she said.
Her classmates gathered around displays and models, trying to connect the artefacts with the civilizations they had previously encountered only in textbooks.
“It feels like the whole world once lived here,” another student remarked. Historical accounts also associate Peshawar with the travels of the Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang, who visited the region in the seventh century. His accounts are frequently linked by historians with the Buddhist heritage of ancient Peshawar and the tradition surrounding Buddha’s great bowl.
From ancient empires to the colonial era
Gor Khatri’s story did not end with the ancient and medieval periods. The complex continued to evolve through the Mughal, Sikh and British eras.
The site is also associated with Paolo Avitabile, an Italian general who served under the Sikh administration and governed Peshawar in the nineteenth century. His former residence remains part of the complex, providing another link to the city’s turbulent political history.
For Bakhtzada Muhammad, it is precisely this accumulation of historical layers that makes Gor Khatri exceptional. “To stand in a place where so many cultures have thrived is humbling,” he said. “The continuity of this site through different historical periods is what gives it exceptional significance.”
He said greater interaction between students and heritage sites could help create a new generation of Pakistanis who understand that national identity is rooted not only in modern political history but also in the civilizations that flourished across the region for thousands of years.
The students’ visit came at a time when Gor Khatri has gained renewed international attention after Pakistan expanded its UNESCO world heritage tentative list.
According to the UNESCO world heritage centre, Pakistan’s tentative list now contains 37 properties, including 12 additions made in 2026. Gor Khatri was formally added on May 11, 2026 in the UNESCO list.
The new additions include the Archaeological Complex of Gor Khatri, Bazira-Barikot, Bhamala Buddhist Complex, Sethi House, Mai Qamro Mosque, Pharwala Fort, Rewat Fort, Tomb of Sultan Muqarrab Khan, Kot Diji Fort, Naukot Fort, Umerkot Fort and the Kalasha Valley Cultural Landscape.
The additions were made in three stages as the Kalasha Valley Cultural Landscape was added on March 9, Kot Diji, Naukot and Umerkot forts on March 18, and eight further properties including Gor Khatri on May 11.
Pakistan currently has six properties inscribed on UNESCO’s world heritage list, while the 37 sites on the tentative list represent properties the country intends to consider for future nomination.
The inclusion of Gor Khatri does not itself mean that the site has received full world heritage status, but it places the archaeological complex within the formal process through which countries identify properties for possible future nomination.
As the afternoon progressed, the students gathered for photographs, national flags raised against the weathered walls of the ancient complex.
For Anaya, the experience had changed the way she viewed her city. “When my friends from other cities come to visit, I will bring them here,” she said proudly. “This is the real Peshawar. This is our pride.”
The sentiment captured the larger message of the visit as patriotism can also be expressed through the preservation, study and appreciation of cultural heritage.
From Indo-Greek and Kushan remains to Mughal architecture, Sikh-era structures and colonial buildings, Gor Khatri embodies the many chapters that have shaped Peshawar.
Its enduring presence in the middle of the modern city offers young visitors a tangible reminder that the story of Pakistan did not begin in 1947. It is connected to a much deeper civilisational history, cities, trade routes, faiths, migrations and communities that have left their mark on the land for thousands of years.
From the ruins of ancient empires to the aspirations of schoolchildren carrying Pakistan’s flag, Gor Khatri thus remains both an archaeological treasure and a living symbol of rich heriage, resilience, continuity and cultural coexistence.
